SALEM — Oregonians who make minimum wage will see the biggest annual increase since 2016 when the state hikes its three minimum-wage tiers by 70 cents each on July 1. The increase, which is now tied to the urban Consumer Price Index, was announced on April 14 by Oregon Bureau of Labor & Industries.
The new annual rate is now calculated based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics. Specifically, the CPI - U.S. City Average for all Urban Consumers for All Items from March of the previous year to March of the current year in. Wage hikes will be based on that increase, if any, with the final figure rounded to the nearest five cents.
Before the seasonal adjustment this year, that rate was at 6.4%, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. However, the adjusted rate was 5%, which is the figure used by BOLI to calculate this year’s increase.
The minimum wage has steadily been raising in Oregon since 2016 and the wage hike in 2022 was the last year Oregon employers would know well in advance what to expect for the coming years.
However, when the law passed, nobody could have predicted that 2023 would see historic inflation rates due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s the impetus behind multiple related bills floated in the Oregon Legislature this session, which wouldn’t change anything for this year.
However, they seek new ways for future years to calculate the hike, push pause on the hikes which are expected to continue as long as the CPI increases, or even...
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